Method of manufacturing pen points



Patented July 2, 1940 PATENT OFFICE z.2os.525 Mnrnon or mnumoruamo runrom'rs George E. Bartol, Jr., Wynnewood, Pa., asslgnor to 0. Howard HuntPen Company, Camden,

N. 1., a corporation of New Jersey Application February a, 1938, SerialNo. 188,467

4 clam. 113-32) This invention relates to an improved pen Point andmethod of manufacture thereof. invention is especially concerned withthat general type of pen point in which the writing tip is folded orprovided with bent tabs forming a rounded and smooth ball at the tip.

More specifically, the invention provides for a writing tip of thisgeneral nature which is capable of producing very fine lines on upwardand downward strokes as well as on transverse strokes of the pen. Inthis respect the pen of this invention is an improvement over .priorpens of this general type in which the bent tabs heretofore presented arelatively broad or transversely thick .writing tip (because of thethickness of the metal from which the pen blank has been stamped inorder to provide the required or desirable resistance to bending).

The present invention provides a pen of the type having bent tabs at thetip formed integrally with the body of the pen but at the same time ofless thickness than the pen body. The invention further has as a majorobject the provision of an effective method for producing this article.I

The manner in which the improvements of the invention are effected willappear more fully in the following description of the preferredembodiment of the method and article, as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing, in which- Figure 1 is a bottom face view of a pen blank asstamped from sheet metal stock in accordance with the preferred practiceof this invention; 7

' Figures 2 and 3 are bottom plan views of the blank following certainmanufacturing steps hereinafter described;

Figures 4 and 5 are end views of the blank after additional steps in theprocess of manu-' facture, the views being taken from the writing tipend of the pen;

Figures ,6 and 7 are bottom face views of the blank after two additionalprocess steps;

Figure 8 is a side elevational view of the completed pen; and

Figures 9 and 10 showmodifled ways for producing pen blanks having tipparts of reduced thickness.

In accordance with Figures 1 to 8, the pen blank is stamped out of sheetmetal stock, preferably stainless steel, and comprises a heel part 9 anda toe part III. A pierce hole ll adjacent the junction of the toe andheel parts may be provided, and the writing tip end of the toe part Inhas laterally extending ears or tabs l2-I2 extended beyond the marginaloutline of the pen to be formed.

. In carrying out this method of making the pen,

after formationof' the blank, the tip part in- Y I cluding the tabs12-42 is swaged to thin the metal of the tip, this thinning beingaccompanied by spreading of the tabs l2|2'to form the somewhat largertabs indicated at In in Figure 2.

Following this-operation, the tabs l2a are preferably trimmed to provideuniformly rounded edges of quite small radius especially at the tip end,as is-indicated at l2b in Figure 3. I

The pairof tabs is then bent toward the under side of the pen, thebending being effected pref- 1 erably in two stages as is indicated byFigures 4 and 5 at I20 and [212.

The metal at the junction between the bent tabs which lies in theoriginal plane of the blank is then slit as shown at IS in Figure 6.Where a pierce hole H is provided, the slit extends up to this hole soas to provide effective delivery of ink therefrom downwardly to thewriting surface. In accordance with my preferred method, the slit isformed by a shearing operation and thereafter the slit is opened to forma slot 13a. (see Figure 7 this being accomplished by swaging the metalof the pen in regions such as indicated at M and Na in Figure '7, region14 lying adjacent the pierce hole or the inner end of the slit and thetwo regions Ma. lying one on each of the nib parts. In carrying out thisoperation the swaging is preferably done in a manner to open the slit atits inner end but maintain the extensions of the tips adjacent to or incontact with each other. This general type of opening of a slit to forma slot is not a part of the present invention per se, the same beingdescribed and claimed in copending applications Serial No. 4,813, filedFebruary 4,1935, and Serial No. 118,464 filed December 31, 1936, ofLloyd S. Hen- 1 wood and George E. Bartol, Jr., respectively, saidapplications having issued as Patents Nos. 2,121,541 and 2,121,542,respectively.

Following opening of the slot lea, the pen is raised or brought torounded configuration as in Figure 8. other process steps common in thisart may also be employed for various purposes, such as smoothing the tipby a running" operation, polishing, gold plating, etc.

In connection with the process of manufacture as outlined above, itshould be noted that certain variations may be adopted. For example,

it may not in all instances be necessary to initially stamp the pen withlaterally projecting tabs l2-l2. In this event, the swaging of the tipwould be relied upon to spread the metal and provide the tabs.Furthermore, in proceeding in this manner it may not be necessary toeffect the same degree of trimming of the tip as suggested in Figure 3,or the trimming might possibly be entirely dispensed with.

In addition to the above the slitting and opening of the slit may beeffected in ways different from that described or at different points inthe process. By way of illustration, the slitting may be effected priorto some or all of the bending of the tabs and may be accomplished by athin abrasive wheel instead of by a shear.

A further modification of the method is also illustrated in Figure 9, inwhich the strip stock it is swaged to provide thinned areas. as at IS.The pens are blanked from this strip stock with the tip tabs l1overlying the thinned area, as is clearly indicated in dot and dashlines. In proceeding according to this method, the individual thinnedareas may be swaged by means of appropriate tools arranged in theblanking machine itself.

Still another modification is shown in Figure 10, in accordance withwhich the strip stock i8 has one complete side edge thereof of reducedthickness, provided either by rolling or swaging, as shown at IS, thetips of the pens again being blanked from the region of reducedthickness.

In accordance with both of the arrangements of Figures 9 and 10, thebending of the tabs (see Figure 4) may take place immediately followingthe blanking operation, thus eliminating the steps shown in Figures 2and 3. a

The most important characteristic of the inventiorr is involved in theprovision of bent tabs at the writing tip of a pen, which tabs arethinher than the adjacent nib parts or than the entire body of the pen.This provides for the production of fine lines on the upward anddownward strokes of the pen and the shaping of the' tabs to uniformcurvature of small radius provides for the production of fine lines onthe transverse strokes of the pen.

An important point to consider in connection with the foregoing is thatthe use of thin metal throughout the entire body of the pen in an efiortto produce a narrow tip (providing for production of fine lines on theupward and downward strokes) would not accomplish the desired purposebecause of the fact that the thinner metal is more flexible and,therefore, gives under writ-- ing pressure to such an extent that thenib parts spread, particularly on the down stroke and produce a heavyinstead of a thin line. Thus it is of importance that the body of thepen be made of metal of substantial thickness but that the tabs at thetip should be reduced in thickness.

I claim:

1. In the manufacture of a pen point, the steps of forming a sheet metalblank having a toe part, swaging the writing tip to decrease thethickness thereof as compared with that of adjacent metal in the toepart of the pen, and bending side edge portions of the writing tipdownwardly to lie in approximately parallel planes, and slitting the toepart between said side edge portions to provide a pair of nib parts.

2. In the manufacture of a pen point from a sheet metal blank havinglaterally projecting tabs adjacent the writing tip, the steps of swagingthe tip portion including said tabs to decrease the thickness thereof ascompared with that of adjacent metal in the toe part of the pen, cuttingon portions of said thinned tabs to provide substantially uniformlyrounded edges thereon of small radius, bending said tabs in a directiontoward the under side of the blank into approximately parallelrelationship, and providing a slit between said tabs.

3. In the manufacture of pens from flat sheet metal stock, the methodwhich includes swaging the metal forming the writing tip of the pen todecrease the thickness thereof as compared with that of adjacent metalforming the toe of the pen, bending side edge portions of the writingtip downwardly into approximately parallel relationship, and slittingthe toe part between said side edge portions to provide a pair of nibparts.

4. In the manufacture of pens from flat sheet metal stock, the methodwhich includes swaging an area of said stock ultimately forming thewriting tip of the pen to decrease the thickness thereof as comparedwith that of adjacent metal ultimately forming the toe of the pen,stamping a pen blank from the stock with the writing tip portion outfrom the swaged area, bending side edge portions of the writing tipdownwardly into approximately parallel relationship, and slitting thetoe part between said side edge portions to provide a pair of nib parts.

GEORGE E. BARTOL, JR.

